Fremione - After Yule Ball
by PNWHufflePuffin
Summary: The Yule Ball had been a total disaster for Hermione, contrast to her usually being in total control. Wandering off to an empty corridor to find peace and quiet to think she is soon joined by none other than Fred Weasley. Annoyed she braces for the teasing, but finds that perhaps there is more to Fred than meets the eye, and maybe he was just who she needed to stumble into tonight.


This is a totally random little Fredmione short story I wrote for fun. I've really been shipping this pair lately and thought it would be fun to write this. I may continue if people show interest in it. Thanks for reading, and leave some feedback if you do like it! Disclaimer that I own nothing to do with the HP universe and that it all belongs to JKR

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How could I have been so stupid? That was the question that kept popping into my head as I slowly sat down against the wall in the abandoned corridor near the painting of the fat lady. I pulled my shoes off and tossed them aside. I felt a rush of relief as my feet adjusted to their natural shape outside of the heals I had been wearing. My hair was starting to fight back against the Sleek Easy potion I had generously applied to it hours previously. Everything was slowly turning back into my usual self, back into Hermione. The rush of foolishness went crashing through my brain again, and I realized that maybe not everything was quite back to normal.

I was many things. One of them at the top of the list, self admittedly, was being somewhat of a know it all. My parents liked to call this ambitious, or driven. I used to argue the same things in school when someone would call me a know it all, or a teacher's pet. If Ron or Harry dared call me a know it all I would probably still opt out to one of the nicer terms and claim to be determined. But I was a know it all, and I was proud of that. Perhaps being a know it all simply got too bad of a rep. I was smart and at the end of the day me being such a thing saved all my friends asses more than once. I was okay with this because I would much rather be smart, and a know it all, than to be called naïve or stupid.

Frustration coursed through me because of all things to make me feel such a way, it was Ron Weasley that was the source. He made me feel the exact opposite of the element I was always in, from the first year we spent at Hogwarts together. He made me feel small and silly. I wrote these feelings off for a long time, because he was my friend, and at the end of the day he's still my friend. I know tomorrow we will wake up and pretend like our public altercation had never happened.

Lately though I had to admit that it was more than him being my friend. I had started to develop different feelings for him, and I don't know how it had even started. I guess remembering back it was when he stood up for me when Malfoy had called me a Mudblood. I could curse Ron Weasley's name and dwell on all the horrible things he has done to me, but the truth was that he had been a good friend too.

It was uncomfortable to my usually organized brain to be feeling so confused. Just hours ago I had been attending the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, who was smart and extremely polite. We had been dancing and talking the night away. Now here I was sitting in an empty hallway on my own crying over some idiot who couldn't even see me as a girl. I was completely pathetic for having let him get under my skin this way.

"Aye, Hermione, what are you doing up here all by yourself?" a voice asked and I looked up to see one of the Weasley twins strolling over to me. He slid down the wall and sat beside me, I looked up and immediately recognized that it was Fred. Everyone had such a hard time telling them apart but to me the very small differences of their faces stood out. Especially Fred's, his eyes were a little rounder and his freckles on his cheeks fell in slightly larger patches.

"Ah, just, having a ball." I muttered uncomfortably, I didn't really want to confide about what had happened with Ron in anybody, let alone one of his brothers. Especially the one most likely to make a joke and a big scene about it. He threw his head back and let out a large laugh, I stared at him bewildered and he stopped laughing as he read my expression.

"It's just that you said you were having a ball, and you're clearly not, I thought you were cracking a joke about the Yule Ball not having gone so well." He explained hastily, though a smirk still shone through on his face. "Ron being a prat again?" He guessed nudging me playfully in my arm.

"Look Fred, I don't really want to make a big deal about this… I really want to be a good sport but I can't handle being the brunt of one of your jokes tonight." I said quietly, talking towards the cold stone floor beneath us to avoid his eyes. I peeked up despite myself to see that he wore an expression of disbelief.

"I know I'm the prank master around here and all, but you're clearly having a rough night. I don't pick on people having a hard time." He explained, his voice both warm and serious. "Unless they're Slytherins… then it's fair game." He finished hastily and I laughed out loud despite myself. He smiled down at me, pleased to have gotten a better reaction this round.

"I shouldn't have assumed the worst in you, I'm sorry." I said still smiling and he shrugged it off. He pulled off his jacket and placed it upon my shoulders. He was so much taller than me that it fell around me like a blanket. I looked up at him and he shrugged.

"You looked cold, and you're sitting against the stone floor which isn't exactly a heater." He commented and I felt a rush of appreciation. I wanted to deny the offer, but I was surprisingly really enjoying Fred's company as didn't want to push him away. He was also right, I had been cold, and the stone floor didn't help.

"Ron was being a prat, you guessed right." I muttered after a couple moments of silence, I was still angry with how stupid Ron had made me feel for getting worked up from his pushing. It felt good to get the words out, I didn't know who else I could talk to about this. Harry was his best friend and so glad to have Ron back after their fight when Harrys name had come out of the goblet that he wouldn't get involved. I didn't have many girlfriends, or any close ones that wouldn't pass along my issues with Ron as gossip. I should have kept it to myself, I was strong enough that I usually did, but tonight I was breaking all my usual rules.

"He can be that way… I think he's missing a sensitivity chip to certain things." Fred said slowly, I could tell he was trying to be honest all while not insulting his brother too much. I appreciated that more than if he had just called Ron a foul name like I wanted to for some reason.

"Yeah that's for sure. He just makes me feel small, and stupid." I explained and Fred looked at me in surprise.

"You're far from stupid, and your presence is much larger than maybe you realize. Maybe someday he'll realize that after he grows up a little bit. He'll just be lucky if you're still around." He said firmly and I smiled wearily up at him. Something was making me feel warm inside and it wasn't just his jacket… it was something about his presence and words.

"Besides you're loads smarter than George and I put together and you're below our year." He said nudging me again. I felt my cheeks getting warm as they flushed with embarrassment at his praise.

"You're so much smarter than you let on, you just invest it into different things than I do." I countered and he smiled down at me.

"Maybe you see that, but most people don't. That's quite the compliment from the smartest girl in school." He replied while still grinning at me, there was something so genuine about his smile that it just made you want to smile too.

"Hey, Fred! Party in the common room!" a voice could be heard calling from some distance away, I recognized it as George's. Lee Jordan's voice followed with some whooping sounds. Fred stood up and offered his hand to me. I grabbed it and his large hand enveloped my much smaller one, I found myself not wanting to let go. I was on my feet and perhaps he felt the same way because he didn't let go right away. He was looking regretful as the calls kept coming for his attention, I felt resentful towards them as well.

"You're brilliant Hermione." He said softly and kissed my cheek before jogging off towards his friends who had rounded the corner. I stood there frozen as they headed for the fat lady's portrait. Of all things that Fred could have called me, he'd chosen brilliant. He could have said I was pretty, beautiful, nice, or anything generic really, but he'd chosen something that resonated much deeper than those words could have. I hugged his jacket close to me, sinking into this strange but wonderful feeling before I would wake up tomorrow and return it to him.


End file.
